Slider for slide fastener

ABSTRACT

A slider for a slide fastener device having a pair of wing portions connected in spaced relation by a post element and having an upper structure on one of the wing portions of sufficient height to receive any load applied to the slider and transmit such load to the connecting post. The upper structure includes a wall surface super-imposed over the connecting post and being substantially flush with the leading edges of the connecting post and the leading edges of the wing portions.

United States Patent [1 1 Moertel [111 v 3,793,684 1' Feb. 26, I974 SLIDIER FOR SLIDE FASTENER George B. Moertel, Conneautville, Pa.

[75] Inventor:

52 its, ct. /zosm [51] Int. Cl..L A44b 19/30 [58] Field of Search 24/205.l4, 204

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,127,654 4/1964 Morin 24/205.l4 3,186,053 6/1965 Morin 24/205.l4 3,427,692 2/1969 Rowlands 24/205.14 2,345,348 3/1944 Marinsky 24/205.l4 2,657,445 11/1953 Weber 24/205.14 3,094,756 6/1963 Scheuerman 24/205.l4

3/1966 Weiner 241205.14

3,320,645 5/1967 Burbank 24/205.14 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS I 220,073 10/1958 Australia 24/205.14

Primary ExaminerBemard A. Gelak [57] ABSTRACT A slider for a slide fastener.device having a pair of wing portions connected in spaced relation by a post element and having an upper structure on one of the wing portions of sufficient height to receive any load applied to the slider and transmit such load to the connecting post. The upper structure includes a wall surface super-imposed over the connecting post and being substantially flush with the leading edges of the connecting post and the leading edges of the wing portions.

2 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures WNW 320 PATENTEBFEBZEIQM 3.793.684

SHEET 2 OF 2 .260 FIG. 5

[MODIFIED I .255 OVERALL HEIGHT IN INcHEs STANDARD .245

PRESS CYCLES 75 FIG 6 CLOSEl STANDARD EASE OF P oRERATIoN 45 0 EN RESISTANCE IN ouNcES ,0

I MODIFIED CLOSE L- tt 15 f oREN O 7 FIG 7 0 2 3 4 5 6 PRESS CYCLES MOUTH MODIFIE HEIGHT D AT STANDARD K gfig- FAILURE W .oI5 (INCHES) .OIO

LOAD IN POUNDS INVENTOR,

BY Geor e g ggg w RNEY SLIDER FOR SLIDEFASTENER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to slide fastener devices and more particularly to a slider for such a device which effects the opening and closing thereof.

. Description of the Prior Art U. S. Pat. Nos. 2,983,018, 3,127,654 and 3,239,905 are representative of prior art devices utilizing spaced wing portions forming a Y-shaped channel by means of a connecting post therebetween and having a pull tab with various types of automatic locks for the slider. However, none of the prior art devices have recognized the particular problem of deformation of the slider as a result of repeated pressing operations of the garment to which the slide fastener is attached. The type of pressing machinery found in dry cleaning establishments is of necessity such a nature that a high compressive force is applied to the slider during the pressing operation. It is due to such a compressive load that conventional type sliders become hard running and cause cutting of the overlaying fabrics. In the prior art devices, the compressive force of the pressing machinery is transmitted directly to the upper wing member on each side of the connecting post causing the bending of the wing member.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a solution to the problem of minimizing deformation of slide fastener devices due to pressing operations.

Another object of the present invention is to construct a slider for a slide fastener device in such a manner as to resist fabric cutting and embossing.

This invention has another object in that a compressive force applied to the slider of a slide fastener is transmitted directly to the connecting post of the slider.

It is a further object of the present invention to minimize the bending movement caused by a load applied to the slider of the slide fastener device.

The present inveniton is summarized in a slider for a slide fastener device including a pair of spaced wings, a pull tab operatively carried by one of the wings, a post element interconnecting the wings at one end to define a substantially Y-shaped channel therebetween, and a wall member on one of the wings in superimposed relation to the post element whereby any load applied to such wall member is transmitted directly to the post element to minimize any deformation of the slider.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiment taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a slide fastener embody-ing the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an isometric view of the slider of FIG. 1 with parts broken away;

FIG. 4 is a cross section taken along the line 4-4 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a graph comparing the slider height reduction of a standard slider due to pressing with the slider height reduction of a slidermodified according to the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a graph comparing the ease of operation after successive press cycles of a standard slider with that of a slider modified according to the present invention; and

FIG. 7 is a graph showing the compression resistance and failure of a standard slider and a slider modified in accordance with the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT,

As is illustrated in FIGS. 1-4, the present invention is embodied in a slider, indicated generally at It), having a lower wing portion 12 with transversely or upwardly extending marginal flanges 14 and 16 on the rear side portions. The front portion of the wing 12 is rounded in the general configuration of a semi-circle. The wing 12 is separated into a pair of longitudinal channels by a centrally disposed, upwardly projecting boss 18 having a rectangular cross section and extending from the rear to the front of the wing 12 where it is joined with a post 20. The post 20 forms a neck or diamond-head defining the integral connection between the lower wing 12 and an upper wing 22 which is similarly constructed as lower wing 12 in spaced mating relation thereto. The wing 22 has a semicircular front portion and a rectangular rear portion with downwardly extending marginal flanges 24 and 26 and a downwardly projecting boss 28 that joins the post 20. The flanges 24 and 26 and the boss 28 on the upper wing 22 are. spaced from and in facing relation to the marginal flanges l4 and 16 and the boss 18, respectively, on the lower wing 12.

A housing for the automatic lock spring of the slider is integrally formed on the forward top portion of the wing 22 in the form of a U-shaped upper structure having a front wall 30 joining spaced side walls 32 and 34. The front wall 30 is an integral formation and extension of the upper wing 22 and presents a smooth front surface defined by the connecting post 20.The top edges of the side walls 32 and 34 are provided with inwardly directed lugs 36 and 38, respectively. A rectangular opening 40 is cut out of the upper wing 22 and is located on its central longitudinal axis-but slightly spaced from the free ends of the housing side walls 32 and 34. A pair of sectors or retaining walls 42 and 44 project upwardly from the upper wing 22 and are axially spaced from but in alignment with the side walls 32 and 34, respectively. The top surface of the walls 42 and 44 are arcuate and have inwardly directed lugs 46 and 48, respectively. As is illustrated in FIG. 2, the front end of sector 42 is disposed adjacent the end of opening 40 on one side thereof, and the front end of sector 44 is disposed on the opposite side of the opening 40.

A pull tab 50 for the slider has a rectangular opening on one end which straddles the sectors 42 and 44 and has a cross bar or trunnion element 52 extending across the space between the opening 40 and the free ends of the side walls 32 and 34.

The automatic lock spring is made from a strip of spring material formed into a generally U-shaped configuration. One leg 54 of the lock spring has a curved end 56 which overlies the pull trunnion 52 and which terminates in a lock tab 58 normally disposed transversely to the upper wing 22 and having a dimension slightly less than the aperture 40 so that the tab 58 projects into the space between the wings-l2 and 22. The opposite end of the leg 54 is joined by a curved section 60 which leads to the upper leg 62 that overlies the leg 54. The leg 62 has a widthwise dimension great enough so that it underlies the housing lugs 36 and 38 for retention thereby; see FIG. 1. On the end opposite the curve section 60, the leg 62 is enlarged to define an intermediate portion 64 having a widthwise dimension large enough that its edges face the free ends of the side walls 32 and 34 and its rear edges face the forward ends of the sectors 42 and 44. While the spring portion 64 need not be in surface contact with the adjacent edges of the walls 32, 34, 42 and 44, they will serve to prevent any substantial displacement of the lock spring. As is illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 4, the enlarged portion 64 is joined to a curving leg 66 having the same width dimension as the leg 62 and having a reduced terminal tab 68 which rests on the upper surface of the wing 22.

As is well known in the art, the slider of the present invention is utilized to open and close the interengaging head elements of a slide fastener by moving the slider relative to such head elements. During such movement the slider pull 50 is lifted from its position shown in FIG. 4 in such a fashion that the lifting and pulling force causes the trunnion 52 to move the locking tang 58 out of the path of the interengaging elements, i.e., the locking tang 58 is displaced upwardly from its position shown in' FIG. 4.

In accordance with the present invention, there is no need to provide a separate cover element for the automatic lock spring. In addition, the automatic lock spring is retained in its operative position on the slider body by means of the retaining lugs 36 and 38 which overlie the adjacent edges of the upper leg 62 of the lock spring; such retaining lugs have the further advantage in that sufficient clearance is provided for the assembly operation of the lock spring. As is shown in FIG. 4, the lock spring is not exposed to any outside forces such as might be encountered during a pressing operation. Modern machinery found in dry cleaning and pressing establishments are not designed to provide special care to a slide fastener during the pressing of a garment; on the contrary, such pressing machines not only press the garment but also exert a compressive force on the slide fastener to which it is attached. Thus, the slider is subjected to a heavy load during the pressing operation, which heretofore has caused deformation and destruction of the slide fastener.

The present invention has the particular advantage that the load applied to the slide fastener because of repeated pressing operations on the garment is no longer carried by the wing portion of the slider but rather is directed to the neck or connecting post of the slider. For example, the load from a pressing machine is applied directly to the upper edge of the wall 30 and is transmitted directly to the post 20 which has sufficient mass to withstand the load without deformation. Thus, the wall 30 not only functions as a portion of the housing for retaining the lock spring but also functions as a means for transmitting the pressing load force directly to the connecting post 20.

The graph of FIG. 5 represents test results on a standard type slider and on a slider modified according to the present invention, wherein 150 pounds pressure was applied by a Hoffman Press. For example, the height of the standard slider was measured at 0.254 inch before any pressing operation. After the first pressing cycle the height of the standard slider was reduced to 0.250 inch and after the second, third, fourth and fifth pressing cycles the height of the standard slider was progressively deformed to 0.243 inch. Thus, the overall reduction in height of the standard pressed slider was found to be 0.01 1 inch. In comparison, the slider modified in accordance with the present invention had an initial height of 0.258 inch and after five pressing cycles was deformed only to a height of 0.256 inch or an overall reduction of 0.002 inch in height.

The graph of FIG. 6 represents the testresults of a second testing conducted on standard and modified sliders with 150 pounds pressure applied by a Hoffman press. In this instance, the operation of the slide fastener was measured as a function of resistance to ease of operation in ounces after five successive press cycles. The results of the standard slider are shown in the dashed line curves for both the opening and closing movements of the slider; similarly, the results of the modified slider are shown as solid curves for the opening and closing movements of the slider. Before any press operation, the ease of operation was measured at 15 ounces resistance for both the standard and modified sliders. After five press cycles, the standard slider had an ease of operation resistance measured at 65 ounces and 71 ounces for the opening and closing movements, respectively, of the slider; this represents an increase in resistance of approximately 50 and 56 ounces with respect to the ease of operation of the standard slider.

The same test on the modified slider showed an increase in ease of operation resistance from 15 ounces to 19 ounces and 2] ounces for the opening and closing movements, respectively, of the modified slider; this represents an increase in resistance of approximately 4 and 6 ounces with respect to the ease of operation of the modified slider.

The graph of FIG. 7 represents the test results of a third testing conducted on standard and modified sliders with an increasing load applied thereto by a Baldwin testing machine. In this instance, the height of the two sliders was measured at their mouths, i.e., at the free end of the rear portions of the wings l2 and 22 or at the left end of the slider as viewed in FIG. 4. From FIG. 7, it is shown that the height of both sliders did not change from the initial measurement of 0.022 inch under a 50 pound load. With a load of approximately 75 pounds, the standard slider started to encounter a height reduction; under pounds load, the standard slider was reduced in height to 0.021 inch. With a load of approximately pounds, the standard slider was reduced in height to 0.017 inch at which point the slider is deemed a failure because the height is not sufficient to permit passage of the interengaging head elements of the slide fastener. In comparison thereto, the slider modified in accordance with the present invention did not undergo any height reduction until the applied load exceeded approximately 270 pounds and did not enter the failure zone until the applied load exceeded approximately 360 pounds.

From the three graphs illustrated in FIGS. 5, 6 and 7, it is now apparent that the slider embodied in the present invention is better able to withstand repeated pressings without any appreciable deformation of the slider. The slider accomplishes this result because of its upper structure being designed in such a way that the bending moment about the connecting post is greatly reduced because the compressive force is transmitted directly through such upper structure to the connecting post. In addition, the upper structure on the slider provides an additional bearing area which not only resists fabric cutting and embossing but also converts the compressive force into a moment that partially negates the collapsing moment of the slider.

The load bearing wall 30 has a width that is slightly larger than the width of the connecting post 20 which assures that substantially all of the compressive load is transmitted to the post 20 and very little (if any) of the compressive load is transmitted to the wings 22 or 12. Inasmuch as the present invention is subject to many variations, modifications and changes in detail, it is intended that all matter contained in the foregoing description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

What is claimed is: l. A slider for a slide fastener device comprising first and second wings disposed in spaced parallel relationship to each other,

each of said wings having a front portion and a rear portion, a post extending between and interconnecting the front portions of said wings to define a Y-shaped channel, I

said post and said front portions having leading edges coextensive with each other,

a pull tab for said slider,

operative connection means between said pull tab and said first wing including a lock spring and a retaining housing for said lock spring on said first wing,

load bearing means on the front portion of said first wing and including a flat upright wall member projecting transverselyfrom the plane of said first wing in a direction away from said second wing,

said wall member defining an end wall of said retaining housing and having a front edge coextensive with said leading edges to form a front surface defining a maximum height of the slider,

said wall member being in superimposed relation to said post contiguous the leading edge thereto so that a load applied to the slider is received by said wall member and transmitted to said post whereby any bending movement between said front and rear 6 portions is minimized,

said first wing portion having a centrally disposed aperture and said lock spring including an elongated U-shaped strip having a locking tab extending from one end thereof through said aperture into the Y- shaped channel, and

said pull tab having a cross bar disposed under said one end for displacing said locking tab out of the Y-shaped channel to permit movement of the slider.

2. A slider for a slide fastener device comprising first and second wings disposed in spaced parallel relationship to each other,

each of said wings having a front portion and a rear portion, a post extending between and interconnecting the front portions of said wings to define a Y-shaped channel, 2

said post and said front portions having leading edges coextensive with each other,

a pull tab for said slider,

operative connection means between said pull tab and said first wing,

load bearing means on the front portion of said first wing and including a flat upright wall member projecting transversely from the plane of said first Wing in a direction away from said second wing, said wall member having a widthwise dimension larger than that of said post and having a front edge coextensive with said leading edges to form a front surface defining a maximum height of the slider,

said wall member being in superimposed relation to said post contiguous the leading edge thereto so that a load applied to the slider is received by said wall member and transmitted to said post whereby any bending movement between said front and rear portions is minimized,

said operative connection means including a lock spring, and

said first wing including a pair of spaced walls connected at one end to said wall member to form a generally U-shaped housing, and a retaining lug on each of said spaced walls to retain said lock spring in assembled relation in said housing. 

1. A slider for a slide fastener device comprising first and second wings disposed in spaced parallel relationship to each other, each of said wings havIng a front portion and a rear portion, a post extending between and interconnecting the front portions of said wings to define a Y-shaped channel, said post and said front portions having leading edges coextensive with each other, a pull tab for said slider, operative connection means between said pull tab and said first wing including a lock spring and a retaining housing for said lock spring on said first wing, load bearing means on the front portion of said first wing and including a flat upright wall member projecting transversely from the plane of said first wing in a direction away from said second wing, said wall member defining an end wall of said retaining housing and having a front edge coextensive with said leading edges to form a front surface defining a maximum height of the slider, said wall member being in superimposed relation to said post contiguous the leading edge thereto so that a load applied to the slider is received by said wall member and transmitted to said post whereby any bending movement between said front and rear portions is minimized, said first wing portion having a centrally disposed aperture and said lock spring including an elongated U-shaped strip having a locking tab extending from one end thereof through said aperture into the Y-shaped channel, and said pull tab having a cross bar disposed under said one end for displacing said locking tab out of the Y-shaped channel to permit movement of the slider.
 2. A slider for a slide fastener device comprising first and second wings disposed in spaced parallel relationship to each other, each of said wings having a front portion and a rear portion, a post extending between and interconnecting the front portions of said wings to define a Y-shaped channel, said post and said front portions having leading edges coextensive with each other, a pull tab for said slider, operative connection means between said pull tab and said first wing, load bearing means on the front portion of said first wing and including a flat upright wall member projecting transversely from the plane of said first wing in a direction away from said second wing, said wall member having a widthwise dimension larger than that of said post and having a front edge coextensive with said leading edges to form a front surface defining a maximum height of the slider, said wall member being in superimposed relation to said post contiguous the leading edge thereto so that a load applied to the slider is received by said wall member and transmitted to said post whereby any bending movement between said front and rear portions is minimized, said operative connection means including a lock spring, and said first wing including a pair of spaced walls connected at one end to said wall member to form a generally U-shaped housing, and a retaining lug on each of said spaced walls to retain said lock spring in assembled relation in said housing. 